Fall 2009: Jake and Nancy learned that Nancy's breast cancer was stage four. Winter 2013: They are still fighting. This is a gathering place to follow their story, offer support, love and prayers... to be by their side.

Friday, June 18, 2010

A mountain to climb

I am continuing to train for the Mt. Adams climb in August and it is going really well. Last weekend we hiked 8 miles with 3,300 feet elevation gain. I hiked with a 22 pound pack, which was challenging but not impossible, so this week I'll increase my pack weight to 30 pounds. Eventually I have to carry 50 - 55 pounds, which is still mind boggling to me. Yesterday, I loaded a 40 pound bag of dog food in the car and thought about how heavy it was...can I carry that plus another 15 pounds on my back up a huge mountain for 4 days?!? I'm hinting to Jake that I may need a little sherpa help for the climb up to base camp.

Anyway, the photos are from last week's hike at the top of Mt. Si. From the top, we had a great view of Mount Rainier (middle photo).

I'll tell you more specifics about the Mt. Adams hike in future posts, but here's a link to our guide service, NW Mountain School. They have a great web site if you want to check it out.